CleverDonkey.com …Musings, Commentary, Opinions, and Drivel

Currently seven Houston locations.

Houston has a plethora of great sit-down, fine-dining restaurants, and also has the requisite number of fast-food chains and Chiligan Fridays-type establishments. Easily lost in this cornucopia is Beck’s Prime. From the outside it looks sort of chain-y and fast food-y. From the inside it sort of looks like a burger joint. But the reality is something completely different and unexpected.

Yes, the ambiance is fast food (no table service), but the food, while not fancy, is composed of astonishingly fresh, tasty, and well-prepared ingredients. My particular favorite is the swordfish sandwich. I like to get it with a side of wild rice. Marie likes to get the veggie burger with a side of grilled veggies (which are actually flame-grilled and tasty). You won’t find any of that on a 99 cent menu. Beck’s also has an array of Angus steaks and chicken dishes, all available at the counter or the DRIVE THROUGH! Yes, you can drive through Beck’s on your way home from work and show up at home with some delicious rib-eyes cooked to order.  The french fries are freshly sliced and fried potatoes, not chopped/formed. The milkshakes are sinfully delicious, guaranteed to contain 10% butterfat. And it all comes at very reasonable prices (higher than fast food, but lower than sit-down).

It’s actually taken us a while to get into the groove with Beck’s. When we would eat on the cheap or need super-fast service, we would opt for traditional fast food. When we wanted better food or service we would opt for traditional sit-down dining. Also, none of their seven locations is right nearby (although they aren’t really far away, either, just not as convenient as fast-food). But every time we would go there we would simply be amazed the great food, good prices, and superbly knowledgeable/efficient/polite/helpful/friendly staff. So now we make it a point to spend the few extra minutes in the car, and spend the few extra dollars on the food to bypass the fast-food grind to have a MEAL, and not just some food. Beck’s fills a perfect niche in our dining repertoire, and they continue to move up in the rotation by always providing consistently fresh, delicious, reasonably-priced food. Give them a try.

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2019 South Shephard – between Westheimer and West Gray

While  growing up in Texas, I never developed a taste for bagels. In my small hometown,  the only bagel options were store-bought, like Lender’s, and I found them to be  unremarkable.

Then I moved to the Northeast and worked for 6 years in the  New York/New Jersey area, and learned what bagels were *supposed* to taste like.  And boy oh boy, did I fall in love with bagels. There was a bagel shop a couple  of blocks from my home, and for years I started the day with a fresh, hot bagel,  usually toasted with either chive cream cheese or with butter.

Then I  moved back to Houston. I *love* Houston and moved back because I knew I missed  everything about it (except for the relentless heat), and I have never regretted  moving back. However, I did miss the hot, fresh, real-deal bagels that I had  grown to love. I tried some of the chains (Einstein Brothers, various donut  chains), but found them to be pale imitations and not worth the  trouble.

And then I was introduced to The Hot Bagel shop. Ohhhhh, baby.  This is the real deal. The good stuff. Authentic, legitimate, tasty, hot,  fresh bagels. If you’ve never had anything but grocery store-bought or  Einstein’s, I urge you to head to the Hot Bagel Shop and try their fantastic  bagels. They also have freshly prepared flavored cream cheeses that are  wonderful. Prices are rock bottom.

The place is really a  hole-in-the-wall, and it’s kind of hard to find. I go there regularly and I  still sometimes drive right by it. It’s on the east side of Shephard, just about  halfway between Westheimer and West Gray. It’s in a smallish white two-story  strip center that also contains the River Oaks Nail shop.

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Backstreet Cafe is located on the Shepherd curve just south of W. Dallas  St. Prices are a bit upscale, but the ambience is unbeatable. We usually try to  go in the spring or fall, when the moderate temperatures make their patio a  nearly magical place to dine. We actually just went this past weekend  (10/11/2002), but were sadly disappointed to find that our *favorite* soup  (sherried mushroom) was no longer on the menu. We tried their new asparagus  soup, but it was extraordinarily ordinary.

As for the rest of the menu, I  had the duck spring roll appetizer, which was fantastic. We also love the  coffee-crusted steak and the meatloaf tower. They also have a good wine  list.

In summary, we still love Backstreet, but given the large selection  of quality dining in Houston, we may go less frequently now that our favorite  soup is no longer available. It’s still a beautiful dining experience in  temperate weather, and the food is certainly above average, so keep Backstreet  in mind.

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On Shepherd just south of I-10. Excellent Italian food for very reasonable prices,  and the atmosphere is very comfortable and cute. Wait staff excellent.

I  highly recommend a ‘slice’ of their pizza, which is a triangular pizza in and of  itself (fabulous crust all the way around, yum!).

Excellent espresso,  too.

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